A Phantom's Heart
by taru taru animegal
Summary: In memory of my mom. Sasori's gone, and Deidara is devistated. All he has left is the puppet the red head left behind, nothing more. Or, is it…? Main Pairing: SasoDei
1. Sasori's no more

A Phantom's Heart

By: Taru Taru Animegal

Summary: Sasori's gone, and Deidara is devastated. All he has left is the puppet the red head left behind, nothing more. Or, is it…?

Rated: M for Character death, some mature themes, and Yaoi.

A/N: For my mom, who passed away not more then a week ago. And Sasodei is such a cute couple that I might actually make this a multi chapter with a possible happy ending. Depends how my mood changes. Eh.

Just for fair warning, the only thing that'll actually follow the anime plot is the beginning. I'm not even sure how Deidara dies. Does he get blown up, or does he commit suicide?? I've heard both, so whatever…

And….we start!! Get some tissues, and kiddies leave now to shield your eyes from the horrible truths of adulthood!!

(((LINEBREAK)))

Sasori was putting up a huge fight, one that neither Sakura nor Grandma Chiori would forget…. It… just took him by surprise.

SLASH.

SLICE.

DRIP Drip, drip…

'…_It's… not possible…'_

The artificial blood splattered all over the surrounding rocks, Sasori just standing there, in pain from the only piece of his human body he had kept with him. His heart was now in pieces, in more ways then one.

His own puppets, the ones he had created to be mother and father, had made him meet his demise. He wouldn't of cared much… if there was no reason to live.

But unknown to everyone, there WAS a reason for him to stay.

'_I… I'm sorry… I let you down…'_

Dry tears rolled down his face as he fell to the cold stone below him. He heard victory cheers in the background, only proving that he was leaving.

'…_No, I won't. I refuse to break that promise…'_

He soon heard footsteps, signaling everyone's leave. He didn't want to die, at least… not until HE got there. After all, HE was his only purpose for staying. There was no other reason. He had no other purpose.

'_I won't let you have to go on alone… Deidara…'_

With those words flowing through his head, his spirit left the puppet, leaving it as an empty shell for the one he cared for most to find.

(((LINEBREAK)))

The Akatsuki were perching on their usual meeting spot, waiting patiently for what their leader had to say.

Deidara was looking everywhere for Sasori, wondering when he was going to get back from his mission. _'How hard could it be to kill an old hag??' _He thought to himself.

Soon after, the leader walked in, something wrapped in a different cloak in his arms. He leapt up and seated himself on the statues head.

"Everyone. The stakes have been raised immensely. As you all must know, Sasori had gone on a personal mission to murder his grandmother. However, what was not in his favor was the fact a medical nin accompanied her on the old one's quest up the mountains. Deidara, please stand." At this, Deidara's ears perked up as he rose, waiting for the instruction of the leader.

"…You are to be the one who will take care of the puppet until Zetsu's return in a month. His heart has already been transported to your room by Hidan. He was stricken twice."

…Deidara couldn't believe what he was hearing. His best friend, His partner, and his secret love… was taken from him. Saying he was in shock was an understatement. His whole chest constricted as he was trying to hold back tears that were threatening to fall. He quickly went onto the leaders pedestal and took the wooden body, running out the door all the more quickly.

He ran down the hallway, not caring if he cried now. No one was there. And the worst part was he KNEW. Even with the body in his hands, His Sasori no Danna wasn't there anymore. He quickly threw open the bedroom door, and laid the puppet on his bed.

'…_I knew it… I should've told you… before you left…' _Deidara felt like an idiot worth nothing… all of his thoughts were focused on what had happened not even a week ago…

(((FLASHBACK)))

"_I'm leaving tomorrow night." A red head said to his partner from his desk. He was working hard on his most prized puppet, readying it for anything that might be thrown it's way. The clay artist looked his way._

"_Where to?" He asked innocently, playing with a ball of the beige sticky stuff in his hands. The other sighed._

"_The mountains, you brat .Don't you remember? The old hag is going up there in a few days, and I have to beat her to it." Sasori told the blonde, putting down his work of art and plopping down on the bed._

"_Oh, that's right… How long will you be gone?" Deidara asked, turning to face the puppet master. Said puppet master just glanced over to the other._

"_A week. Two at the most." This is what got Deidara thinking._

"…_Ne, Sasori no Danna… When you were little, did you ever love anybody?" He aske unexpectedly. He turned to the window and blushed. He couldn't actually belive those words came out of his moth._

"…_After my parents died, no." The elder stated simply, his face never changing. 'But I do love you…' Sasori thought to himself at the end._

"_Why do you ask anyway? Don't tell me you're so foolish as to believe in love." Sasori added, just to emphasize on the Your-Still-Inferior Image._

_Deidara's breath hitched. He had hoped Sasori didn't see right through him. But at the same time, he had wished he could just tell him the truth._

…_But he knew he couldn't. He knew that if he told the red head, he'd either have to live with rejection, find himself a different partner, or be killed right then and there. Sasori wouldn't take it lightly, nor would he EVER return his feelings._

_Which is why his only solution was to lie._

_Deidara soon scoffed. "Why would I believe in such a stupid thing? I don't go looking for girls, I blow them up. It's just my nature."_

_Sasori knew for a fact that Deidara was lying. Itachi had told him nearly two months ago about the blonde's true feelings. Now, if he could only have the courage to tell him the truth…_

"…_Deidara?" He said quickly, turning his head to look at the other. Deidara took his eyes off the window. "Something wrong?"_

_Next thing that happened was a real shock to both of them. Sasori gave the clay artist a small, but genuine, smile._

"…_No, but we should be getting to bed. Goodnight, brat." The red head said before laying his head down on the black and red pillos of his queen sized bed._

_The next morning, Itachi had told the blonde that Sasori had left 8 hours earlier then he was supposed to._

(((ENDFLASHBACK)))

Deidara had been lying on his own bed for nearly an hour, tears falling down his nearly blistered cheeks uncontrollably. He kept taking glances to the empty puppet, wondering when and if it would spring to life, knowing full well the awnser.

"Why… Why couldn't you have let me go with you…" He said to himself. He felt now like his own body had been drained of life. He'd been wishing the whole thing was a nightmare. But he knew it wasn't. His Danna was gone, and there wasn't anything he could do about it.

"_Because, if you had gone with me, you'd of died, too." _Deidara jumped at the sound of Sasori's voice ringing through his head. He thought that he was going crazy.

"_You're not going crazy, brat." _The voice said again, this time more embodied. Gentle arms wrapped around Deidara's waist, cradling the blonde in comfort.

Deidara, However, was shaking. He felt like Hidan had put something in his food and he was having hallucinations. Even if Sasori had appeared to him as a ghost, there was no way in _**HELL **_that he would be comforting him. Hugging him. Anything like that.

"Who… who ARE you!?" Deidara said, a bit louder then he should have. The voice chuckled a little, before tightening his grasp around the clay artist.

"_It IS me, brat. Did you really think they'd let me go to Heaven OR Hell? You know very well I'd take over one or the other." _Sasori's ghost said. Deidara shook his head.

"I won't… I refuse to believe it… There is NO such thing as an afterlife…" Deidara said, tears falling out of his eyes again. Sasori quickly rolled his eyes and turned to face the other. He cupped the boy's cheek in his transparent hand.

"_Deidara. There IS such a thing, and I really am right in front of you. Hidan did not put anything in your food. I'm right here." _Sasori decided to prove it and wpe away the tears Deidara was shedding.

"Danna… how… why…??" Deidara said, looking now into Sasori's full face, even though transparent.

"_I couldn't leave you… Deidara… you are the only one on this planet who could see, hear, or feel me now. Because there is only one regret I have of ever leaving this world…" _The elder said slowly, as to let Deidara take in all this info. He wasn't exactly the quickest when it came to registering things in his mind. Sasori knew he might literally have to spell it out for the blonde. And he was more then willing to do it if became necessary.

"…_And that regret… Is not being able to show you how much I really love you." _With that said, Sasori crashed his lips into the younger as to let all of the pent up emotions out at once. Pain, Sadness, depression, lust, and most important, love, was all blended into that simple jesture. And Deidara could feel it.

"Danna…" The boy mumbled as he caught his breath. The tears started to appear once again.

"Please… don't leave me yet, Danna… I…"

"_I'm not going anywhere. I have a plan, and I need your help to fulfill it. It will be dangerous, but it'll be worthwhile. Will you help me, Dei-Koi?" _The ghostly figure said. Deidara nodded, and laid himself on the bed. Sasori moved above him, and started petting the blonde locks while in deep thought.

'_I hope this will work… for Deidara's sanity, if not my own…' _He looked down at the boy. _'Tomorrow will be something; I'll make sure of that.'_

(((NEXTDAY)))

Everyone got up early, as usual, to meet in the living room. Or the "Front room" as the leader calls it. Deidara, as usual, was sleeping in, trying very hard to ignore the calls coming from his bedroom door.

"DEIDARA!! THE LEADER WILL HAVE YOUR HEAD!!" Kisame said while banging on the door. Deidara covered his face, knowing full well that Itachi would break down the door sooner or later.

"_Just get up, brat. If he knocks down the door, my plan goes down the drain." _The red headed phantom said on top of the window sill. Deidara yawned, deciding to at least signal his awakening.

"HURRY UP!!" Kisame called as the pair stomped down the hallway. Deidara got up, not bothering to change his clothes (Knowing fully that Sasori was watching him) and pulled out another cloak from the small closet. The phantom smirked.

"_What's the matter, Dei-Kun? It's not like I haven't seen you in your birthday suit before." _Deidara's face turned bright red as he walk on his heels to the door. The red head sighed and walked (or flew) behind the other, following him out to the other room.

"Deidara, Must we punish those who choose to be tardy?" The leader said from the other side of the room.

"No, Leader sama, I won't be late again…" Deidara looked to the floor, ashamed of being late the third time that week.

"_I was right. You'll never be able to wake up on your own, will you?" _The phantom said from his usual spot. The blonde had to bite his tongue to keep from yelling at Sasori. And luckily, Itachi was the only one to notice his change in behavior.

"…Take a seat." Deidara moved to his usual spot, right next to the pantom no one else could see.

"…as we discussed last night, Deiidara's partner took a fall against his grandmother."

"_Took a fall, my ass." _The phantom said out loud, making Deidara turn his head abruptly.

"Something wrong, Deidara?" The leader said. Deidara shook his head, and shifted himself more to the middle.

"… as I was saying, Deidara will have to find a new partner. We can not have him doing missions on his own. We wouldn't want to have a repeat of this incident, now would we?"

"No, leader sama…" Sasori could hear the sadness in Deidara's voice.

"_It's ok, Dei-Koi. I'm right here. Don't cry in front of the others." _Sasori rubbed Deidara's back to comfort him. The blonde looked up.

"Is there a certain person I will be looking for?" He asked, staring at the leader. Pein stood up.

"Yes. If you have taken close look at Sasori's finger, you will see that the ring has been stolen. You have until Zetsu gets back from his assignment to find the person who took it."

"Yes, leader sama."

"Dismissed."

Deidara stood up and glanced over to his left, catching an evil glint in Sasori's eyes. He shuttered at the thought of Sasori torturing the others…

"_Oh, don't worry. I'm not going to anything… much." _As soon as Deidara heard that, Sasori turned over the table and the food landed all over Pein. Sasori smirked at the Leader's face.

Luckily for the blonde, Sasori was by Kakuzu when he flipped the table over…

"KAKUZU! You WILL clean this up!" The leader roared, standing up and running to his room. Kakuzu looked up from the pile of money lying in his lap.

"What happened?" He asked to himself. He shrugged, and headed back to his room.

"Hn. Deidara." Itachi said from the other side of the room, gesturing him to follow. Deidara nodded, and followed the other to his bedroom.

Deidara took a seat at the edge of Kisame's bed, Sasori right next to him.

"You can see him, can't you?"

(((LINEBREAK)))

A/N: Read, Review, Flames are Kyuubi's… I'm going to sleep. Today I really have no clue why I started writing this… but one thing for sure!! There is a pepsi calling my name!! runs into the other room

Thanks for reading!!


	2. Plan and Escape

Disclaimer (since I forgot all about it last chapter): I don't own the Akatsuki, Naruto, or even his froggy wallet –starts crying-

A/N: oh wow… I really didn't think I'd be continuing this!! The first chapter was originally going to be a one-shot with a lemon, but I changed my mind at the last second… literally. I was SOOO tempted, though…

But anyway, cliffy no more, Hearse the second chappie!!

(((LINEBREAK)))

"_Hn. Deidara." Itachi said from the other side of the room, gesturing him to follow. Deidara nodded, and followed the other to his bedroom._

_Deidara took a seat at the edge of Kisame's bed, Sasori right next to him._

"_You can see him, can't you?"_

(((LINEBREAK)))

"Wh…what?" Deidara asked, shock and confusion taking over his body. _'Could… could he really see…?'_

"_Yes, brat. He can see me as clearly as you can. Call it his "I see dead people" Makegenkyo." _The phantom told the younger. Deidara's eyes widened.

"Hn. Judging by your expression that would be a yes. You can probably hear and feel him too." The brunette said. He walked over to his large dresser and pulled out a jar, green liquid along with something else inside.

"This is one of the things you're looking for. Their Sasori's real eyes." He said, passing the jar to the blonde. Said boy grimaced.

"And… why exactly do I want his eyes?" He asked, placing the jar on one of the nightstands next to him. Sasori rolled his transparent eyes as Itachi walked back to his bed.

"He hasn't told you yet?" The brunette questioned. Deidara shook his head, in both an answer and confusion. Why the heck would he want Sasori's eyes when he himself didn't want them??

"_Ask Itachi to explain. We talked about this not that long ago…" _Sasori said, moving over to sit in front of the door.

"…Deidara… If you want to bring Sasori back… You will have to make a new puppet."

"WHAT!?" The blonde said; a disgusted look etched on his face. "There is no WAY I can make a new puppet!! Let alone NOT blow it up soon after!!"

"_Brat. It wouldn't be THAT hard to make a puppet. You already have the shell in your bedroom."_

"…Do you mean I have to rebuild Sasori No Danna's body?" Deidara asked Itachi, shock on his face. Itachi nodded, and the blonde fell off the bed, catching the jar with three fingers.

"_It's the only way, Deidara. Or… did you not mean what you said?" _Sasori asked, hurt evident in his eyes. The blonde looked away, Knowing that he had hurt the red head. He made up his mind soon after.

"…Alright. Just… tell me what to do." Deidara told Itachi. He nodded, and pulled out a piece of paper.

"This is a list of all the parts you'll need. I think Hidan may have taken part of it. Ask Kakuzu to help you with him." The sharingan user told him. "After that, you're on your own."

'_Well, not completely alone…' _The blonde thought before nodding and exiting the room. This was going to be a very long month…

(((LINEBREAK)))

"Absolutely not. That loud mouth can keep his smelly jars." Kakuzu told the now sulking blonde, the string man not even looking up from his money to notice.

"But Kakauzu-san, this is important!! If I don't get those jars back by next month…" Deidara couldn't continue. The mere thought of Zetsu eating his Danna's body was painful enough. He coughed to keep from crying.

"For the last time Deidara, no. I will not take part of your twisted idea."

"_That idiot. I guess some persuading is in order." _Sasori told the blonde in his head before moving over to the huge pile of money. _"Usually I'd be against your art, but in this case it might come in handy. Tell him if he doesn't get the jar back, you'll blow up this huge pile."_

Deidara nodded, and started moving the clay in his hand mouths to soften it. "Kakuzu, I think I can change your mind…" The blonde said, a wicked grin plastered on his face.

"Oh? And how do you think you will manage that?" Kakuzu turned away, eyes widening in shock as little spider figurines hopped out of Deidara's hands and into the big pile of money.

"If you don't get the jar back before sunset, say goodbye to your cash." Sasori watched in amusement, he was impressed by the blonde's sadistic personality. It wasn't long before the string man was cursing under his breath and walking towards Hidan's laboratory.

Deidara peeked in as Kakuzu made conversation with the silver haired reaper. Every now and then, a string of curse words would be said, but that was nothing out of the ordinary. About a half an hour later, Kakuzu was bidding his farewells and heading out the door.

"Did you get the jar?" Deidara asked, not bothering to be polite about it. The string man nodded, and handed over a jar that seemed to have muscle tissue in it.

"There, I did what you asked. Now leave my money alone." Kakuzu seemingly pouted as he stomped back into his room. Deidara snickered, and headed back to his room, the new jar in hand.

'_Three more to go.'_ He thought, entering the room to figure out his next move.

(((LINEBREAK)))

The last three items on the list were going to be ten times more difficult then blackmailing someone into giving you the right jars, since two out of three had to be fresh from a human body. He decided to keep those until later, and focused on getting the final jar.

As Deidara kept reading the map, confusion and frustration washed over him like a pile of bricks. He couldn't read the map if his life depended on it. Sasori just smirked over his shoulder.

"_You know maybe I should read the map and just tell you where to go?"_

"SHUT UP, UN!! I'm trying to read this map!!" The blonde huffed and turned the map in every which way he could think of. Sasori just sighed and decided to help the confused blonde silently. He used a bit of Deidara's chakra to summon one his strings, and pointed from A to B where he had to go. Not to mention adding a few names here and there.

Deidara deadpanned. "Smartass."

"_I think the correct term is 'sexy ass'. Now put the map away and get some sleep, we need to leave the base before sun up." _Deidara just nodded, too tired to fight with the red head. He carefully placed the scroll and jars underneath his bed, and changed into his pajamas (making Sasori turn around when he did so, however). He didn't even bother to pull up the covers when he flopped on the bed. Sasori chuckled lightly, and once again borrowed the blonde's chakra to put said boy upright.

"_Sweet dreams, Dei-koi." _ And with that note, the phantom kissed the boy's forehead, and wandered off to inspect why the Akatsuki were having a meeting without him.

(((LINEBREAK)))

The Akatsuki members made their posts on a large statue, the leader perched on the head. Sasori maneuvered over to his post, knowing full well the only one who could probably see him was Itachi.

"As you all know, I have been informed about Deidara's intentions. He may think it is for a good cause, but this private mission could easily endanger the Akatuki. You are all to prevent Deidara from leaving the base, and tomorrow morning Sasori's body is to be moved to Zetsu's room.

"_Over my dead body, you sadistic bastard." _ Sasori grumbled out loud. Looks like the blonde wasn't going to get any sleep that night after all.

"YES SIR!" The members all cried out before heading to their individual quarters for bed. Sasori stood up and leaped over to the head of the statue, the leader not more then a yard away. He stood there, pain and anger scorching through his transparent body until rational thoughts took over his mind again. He looked at the moon. 3 A.M. Without a second thought, he headed towards the blondes room with every intention of waking him up before the others.

As he entered the room, however, he noticed that not everything was in place. Deidara had changed beds, and was shivering and whimpering in his sleep. Sasori didn't like this in the least.

He walked over to the side of the bed and laid his hand on the boy's cheek. Deidara just leaned away.

'_A nightmare…?'_

Deidara was at this point curled into a ball and mumbling incoherent words and pleas. Sasori thought it best to wake him up now then a little later.

"_Deidara… Deidara, wake up!"_ The blonde shot up in his bed, cold sweat trickling down his face. He was defiantly grateful that it was just a nightmare.

"D-danna… It was awful… Zetsu… he wanted to… and you…" He couldn't finish as his anguish took over. Sasori did what he thought best and cuddled the blonde.

"_Deidara… I know the dream must've been horrible, which is why we have to leave now. Leader is planning on making you stay in the base and have my body transferred into Zetu's room until he returns to finish the job." _The blonde's eyes went wide, and before the phantom could say another word, his body was on the bomber's back, and they were heading out the front of the base.

(((LINEBREAK)))

A/N: eh, I have to admit I played hurry up and wait with this chapter, but I don't that will be happening again for a while. I'm still a little bit in shock from my mom's death, but it's worn off to the point that my updates won't be every 3 months or so. And in honesty, I love this story!!XD who knew that pain and anguish could turn into one of my best writings!

R&R PLZ!!


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